Media and policy issues: South Africa

J3: 2003

Coming up

• Recapping

• Issues for media policy

• Broadcast policy issues

• SA media policy landscape

1. RECAPPING:Key questions for policy

• Who is involved?• Where are they?• When are they involved?• How are they involved? Values,

interests, research, secrecy• Why policy?• So what?

Paradigm spectacles:

Functionalist Liberal

Marxist Radical

Key issues:

1. Role of state

2. Philosophies

3. Scope of policy

4. No policy & failure

2. ISSUES IN MEDIA POLICY

Adapted from Steyn: • Deregulation or re-regulation• Liberalisation• Corporatisation/commercialisation• Privatisation• Concentration laws

More issues in media policy

• Public broadcaster• Freedom of expression• Diversity• Social/cultural issues: language,

nationhood• Convergence

In whose interests?

Publicinterest

Govt interest

Private sector interest

POLICY

Golding: Policy focus

INDUSTRY STRUCTURE

MEDIA

CONTENTS

Golding: Policy ethos

interventionist

inte

rventio

ni

st

liberal

liber

al

INDUSTRY STRUCTURE

MEDIA

CONTENTS

Golding: Policy systems

Authoritarian Free market + strong

state

Regulatory Libertarian

interventionist

inte

rventio

ni

st

liberal

liber

al

INDUSTRY STRUCTURE

MEDIA

CONTENTS

Summing up

• Key issues facing media policy

• Question: whose interests served?

• Policy on content, on industry structure

• Interventionist vs liberal ethos

• Systems.

3. SINGLING OUT BROADCAST

• Historically authoritarian:– media content – industry structure

• Form: – state monopoly– public must pay licence fees– universal service notion

Why broadcast & not print?

• Rationale: – uses public frequency spectrum

– nation-building power

• Exceptions are the rule!– Print is regulated in many countries!

– Rationale: seen as powerful

Regulatory rationales• Broadcast liberalisation is also

regulated:– Spectrum and order argument

– Social factors arguments

= License commercial broadcasters.

• Thus policy covers all broadcasters:• Eg. Local content, morals, elections,

news, language, uni service, tariffs, etc.

Perspectives

• Broadcast control in whose interests?– the public (functionalist view)

– government/ruling class (marxist)

– private interests (pluralist)

– consumers & communities (rad dem)

Convergence confuses

• Digital broadcasting:– Policy when frequency not at stake?

• Different channels:– When broadcast goes via Net?

• Other frequency use: – When goes via 3G or WiFi?

Summing up

• Broadcast policy issues:– Historically more susceptible to policy

and regulation

– Frequency and social issues

– Convergence issues

4. SA MEDIA POLICY

• Constitution guarantees free exp.

• Constitutional guarantee of independent regulator

• Law on Hate Speech

• Law on Film & Publications

• Defamation & copyright law

Where is media policy made?

• Institutions:– parliament

– government

– ICASA

– industry (BCCSA, Ombudsman)

– Film and Publications Board

– Media Devt and Diversity Agency

Players in SA media policy

• Actors within the institutions

• Business (eg. Convergence Bill)

• Civil Society

• Courts

• Note: conflicts between sites and also between players

Brief history: apartheid

• Values & interests:– racist, anti-democratic

• State control:– Broadcast near monopoly

– Print hemmed in by laws

• Aim: media as tool for apartheid

New factors at work …Freedom of ExpressionDeregulation, LiberalisationPrivatisation, CommercialisationConcentration and ownershipPBSLanguage and social issuesConvergence

Post-apartheid media policy• Values & interests:

– non-racial, BEE, democratic

• State liberalised:– Broadcast pluralism– Print is free – Subsidies by MDDA

• Aim: media as mixed sector–Public service, access, make money

Key moment: 1993

• Three groups (cf Horwitz):– ANC (new state)

– NP (old state, pro-market)

– Civil society (pro-participation)

• ANC and NP compromise: – neither will control

• Civil society writes 1993 IBA Act.

New broadcast landscape

• IBA–Satra

–Merger: Icasa

• Triple enquiry issues:– local content

– funding public broadcaster

– cross & foreign ownership

Three tier system

1. Community broadcasting: - 100 new stations licensed

2. Public broadcasting: - a cut-back SABC

3. Private broadcasting:– privatised 6 stations

– greenfields stations

Complementarities

TIEROwnership Purpose Obligs Funding

Community community access mediumvolunteer, donors, ads

PBS statepublic service high

adverts, licenses, sponsors

Commercial private growth lowadverts, sponsors

FEATURES

Complexities: • Funding:

– all chasing advertising

• Access:– all providing some access

• SABC:– Pbs and Cpbs, – Two new television stations– Internal policies & accountability

Issues:• Who finally decides policy:

– Icasa or govt or parliament?• Eg. SABC’s policies issue

• Who makes policy? Compare: – Codesa group: 1993 Act – Stakeholders group:

• green & white paper: 1997 Act

– Industry consultation: 2003 Bill

Summing up• Current institutions

• Pre and post apartheid policy

• Key moment – 1993

• Three tier system

• Key issues and perspectives: authoritarian, radical democratic, marxist, functionalist

5. CONCLUSION

• Issues in media policy

• Broadcast policy

• SA media policy

• Broadcasting complexity

Conclusion:

• Read: Steyn

• Read: Golding, Horwitz

Thank you